Neethu reached the college hostel, which was admired for its beautiful infrastructure. The college could be viewed clearly from it.

She completed all the formalities and the hostel in-charge gave her a token, which had her room's number. She noticed it and stood dumbstruck. Her lips turned upwards in a smile. It was the number 25. Her mind flashed back to the time spent in the flight.

Her room was on the first floor. She refused to take the lift and used the staircase. She reached her room and noticed the door was wide open. Silence followed.

"Hey, friends," Neethu smiled. The three girls sitting there returned her smile.

She placed her bag in the cabinet and sat down on the couch. "Well, let's break this silence. Do introduce yourself," she said.

They talked a lot and Neethu now had three new friends: Shanu, Mithila, and Rishwana. Each of them is from different states. They became very close on the very first day. They shared their dreams, expectations about college, and fears.

Neethu was excited but not truly happy. She thought about him. She felt that there was an idle place in her heart for him. Her eyes were longing to see him at least once.

==============================

Rithick's dad, Sanjay had made all the arrangements to pick up his son from the airport. His driver, Uncle John drove him to the guest house.

Usually Rithick and his parents spent their memorable moments in this guest house.

He was amazed upon seeing so many beautiful flowers at the front of his house and an artificial waterfall at the back. The guest house seemed like a palace. He knew that it was his dad's surprise for him. "Love you, dad. Thank you," he whispered.

He searched for the keys in his baggage and he was shocked to see that the door was unlocked. He pushed the door and dropped his bag on a nearby couch. He sensed that someone was there.

"Who is hiding inside?" he shouted. There was nothing except silence.

"Can't you hear me, man? Stand in front of me, coward."

He found a paper near the staircase. It read, "Hey, man, If you are daring enough, come to the balcony."

He noticed two men conversing deeply. Their faces were enclosed in masks.

He moved closer and pulled the hands of a fellow behind his back. He took off the mask and was dismayed. One of them was his uncle, Rudhra. He was a detective and the other was his uncle's son, Rahul.

"Hey, Rahul! You scared me, damn it!" They hugged each other.

"Dear, Rithick. You are brave! I wanted to see it again, da. Missed you badly," Rahul said with a sad smile.

"Hey son! Give me a glance too," his uncle said with a smile.

"Sorry, uncle. How are you? Dad didn't say anything about your arrival."

"I am good, my son. This was a planned surprise for you, my brave kid," he said. Then, the conversation between them turned serious.

Rithick's phone rang, his father was on the line.

"I am safe here with uncle and Rahul. How are you and mom doing? I am amazed by all your suspenses."

"Love you too, my son. Yeah, Ruthra and Rahul are affectionate towards you, so I have requested them to be there, son. Another big surprise, they will be staying with you. Hope Rahul didn't spill it; he's going to study along with you. Hope you will thoroughly enjoy. Take care, son, will call you later." His father hung up after that.

"Rahul! I am very happy, da. I will continue my studies with you. I know you will be there for me. No one can replace you, man."

"Sanjay, I was in a call," his uncle said. He went outside.

Rudhra said, "Hello, Sanjay. I am here to take care of Rithick. Don't worry about him."

Sanjay replied. "I am relieved, Rudhra. My son is safe. I can't bear if anything happened to him. Our plan should be a secret at any cost. Rithick should not know about this. I want my son safe, Rudhra. I think Bengaluru will be safe for him.Take care of him."

Rudhra assured, "Ok, Sanjay, don't worry. I will always be with Rithick. Rahul is there to take care of him as well. Bye, brother." Rudhra hung up.

Rithick and Rahul talked about their lives in the past two years.

Rahul felt that something was disturbing Rithick. His face seemed dull and had a dry smile that was not from his heart.

"Are you okay, Rithick?" Rahul asked.

"Of course, I am alright."

"I know you, man. Something is there, don't try to hide it."

Rithick was not in the mood to explicate about the journey--about Neethu. "Nothing to worry about, I am good."

Rahul prodded further, "How was the journey? Did anything bad happen?"

Rithick was unable to hide anything from Rahul because they knew each other well. There were no secrets between them.

Rithick sighed." Yes... Neethu."

Rahul, frowned." What? Neethu? Did you shout at her?"

"No, I didn't shout at her, I just looked at her for an hour and a half," Rithick said with a half-smile.

Rahul laughed. "Impossible! Are you kidding?" He was aware of Rithick's history with girls. "Do you remember Suhana?"

Rithick yelled, "Shut up. I will kill you if you say her name again."

"What's wrong in that? How can you forget her? How she had arranged for you to fall in her love... But you... man." Rahul chuckled. "You didn't even look at her once. You shouted at her in front of others. Cold-Blooded man."

"Stop it! I said stop it, Rahul. Don't make me furious. You know about Suhana and Jeevitha, they loved my money more than me."

"Okay, okay, calm down." Rahul paused for a second and asked gently, "Well, who is Neethu?"

"Neethuuuuu..." Rithick stretched her name with a humble smile on his lips.

"Have you ever seen a young girl who doesn't care about anything around her for the sake of making others happy? Have you ever seen a girl who talks without stopping? Have you ever seen a girl who is innocent by heart?"

Rahul was astonished. "Are you Rithick? I can't believe my own eyes. What's happening here, man?"

Rithick continued in a dazed voice, "What magnetic eyes she had! I was unable to look away. They sparkled like 1000-Watt bulbs. I felt breathless near her. Each and every word of her made me open the door of my heart and she is safe inside now."

"Wow! I'm so happy for you, Rithick." Rahul patted his cheeks. "Did you convey your feelings?"

"I didn't know how to... I looked at her silently. She finalized that I was dumb. What a girl she was!"

Rahul grinned. "Dumb?" He burst out laughing.

Rithick smiled shyly. "Stop laughing. She is my girl." He sighed deeply. "People say that angels live in heaven. I don't believe that. She is my earthly angel, my dream girl..."

"Wow! You have decided to make her a part of your life. Very proud of you, man."

"My eyes were longing for hers. I wanted to call her mine. When she said bye to me, I felt that everything was being snatched away from me. I felt like holding her hands, but she left..." Rithick's voice held an intense emotion.

"Rithick, don't worry. She will be yours."

"I don't know anything about her. Where would she be staying? She did say she was here to pursue her dreams." Rithick sighed.

'Well, if she is here to study, she has to be here for at least two years," Rahul said.

Rahul's words made Rithick feel much better and gave him confidence. "I will find her... I want to love her madly."

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